SINGAPORE: Most Asian currencies strengthened on Thursday, with the dollar weakening after the presidents of the United States and the European Commission agreed to lower trade barriers, alleviating immediate concerns about worsening global trade relations.

“Both the EU and US have agreed to put on hold any plans for tariffs, essentially establishing a trans-Atlantic trade truce,” Mizuho analysts said in a note.

“This welcome, but unexpected, positive turn in global trade dynamics almost immediately unravels fears of trans-Atlantic trade war.”

Investors are also eyeing the European Central Bank’s policy statement due later on Thursday for any references to the pace of monetary policy normalisation.

“An announcement of some sort of deal should aid growth, aid the return of inflation, and aid the ECB and other central banks’ plans to ease monetary accommodation,” said Greg McKenna, chief market strategist at CFD and FX provider AxiTrader.

Among regional currencies, South Korea’s won led the gains, strengthening 0.5 percent against its US peer while the Indian rupee strengthened for a second straight session, gaining as much as 0.13 percent on improving risk sentiment.

Taiwan’s dollar firmed 0.2 percent. Singapore’s dollar weakened 0.3 percent while the Thai Baht traded flat.

The Chinese yuan, which has been under strain from the intensifying Sino-US trade row, traded 0.3 percent weaker.

“Any positive developments in the Sino-US trade front should provide some room for recovery for battered EM Asian FX,” OCBC analysts said in a note.

China’s central bank (PBOC) lifted its official yuan midpoint by the most in three weeks to 6.7662 per dollar on Thursday, reflecting the spot yuan’s performance a day earlier and broad weakness in the greenback overnight.

Most recently the PBOC has told some Chinese banks that a prudential capital requirement on them would be eased, Bloomberg reported, to support lending as authorities try to mitigate risks to growth from the nascent Sino-US trade war.—Reuters